Dielectric-loaded surface plasmon polariton waveguides (DLSPPWs) are typically made using nanolithography fabrication methods. In this paper we demonstrate that near-field electrospinning of polymer nanofibers directly onto a gold coated substrate can be used as an alternative method for rapid prototype fabrication of DLSPPWs. Surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) have been excited directly inside the electrospun fibers using a prism in the Kretschmann-Raether configuration. A scanning near-field optical microscope (SNOM) was used to characterize the propagation of the excited SPP inside the polymer fiber demonstrating the potential for using electrospun polymer fibers as SPP waveguides. (C)2013 Optical Society of America